Spurgeon’s Recommended Commentaries on the Historical Books

Joshua

Contextual Commentaries

• Smith, Thornley. The History of Joshua.
  • Although not a commentary, it will answer the same purpose; for almost every event is fully illustrated. A capital work.

Technical Commentaries

• Lange, Peter. Commentary on Joshua
  • This is a standard work. No minister’s library is furnished ‘without the whole set. Joshua however is inferior to Judges.

Exegetical Commentaries

• Calvin, John. Commentary on Joshua.
  • We have said enough upon Calvin in general. His expositions are more equal in excellence than those of other men; other men rise and fall, but he is almost uniformly good.
• Bush, George. Notes, Critical and Practical on the Book of Joshua
  • Bush is a careful illustrator of the Word, and apt at giving the practical lesson. His works are well compiled.

Judges

Contextual Commentaries

• Kitto, John. Daily Bible Illustrations.
  • Exceedingly meritorious. Refer to it frequently.

Technical Commentaries

• Lange, Peter. Commentary on Judges.

Exegetical Commentaries

• Bush, George. Notes on Judges.
  • Like other works of this author—of considerable value.

Sermonic Commentaries

1. Rogers, Richard. The Whole book of Judges.
   • This for the Puritan period is THE work upon Judges. It is thoroughly plain and eminently practical.
2. Wiseman, Luke. Men of Faith: Sketches from the Book of Judges.
   • Mr. Wiseman in this work tells of Gideon and Barak, of Samson and of Jephthah, and he does it in a powerful style. He was one of the best preachers in the Wesleyan body, a man of fullness, and judiciousness; in fact, a wise man.
3. Rogers, George Albert. The Valor of Faith: The Gospel in the Life of Gideon.
   • A thoroughly lively little book. Each of the eight chapters is full of thought.

Hymns and Poetry

• Quarles, Francis. The History of Samson.
  • This queer, quaint, odd volume of rhymes is far from despicable. Kitto frequently quotes Quarles upon Samson, and says of him that he was a poet of no mean order. We are glad to have his testimony to confirm our own opinion. Rennea tastes will be offended, but those who wish for quaint thought will be gratified. The book is very rare.

Ruth

Sermonic Commentaries

• Topsell, Edward. The Reward of Religion: Lectures upon Ruth.
  • A very choice old work. Attersol in his rhyming preface says of it— “Go little Booke, display thy golden title, (And yet not little though thou little bee); Little for price and yet in price not little, Thine was the Paine, the gaine is ours I see: (Although our gaine thou deem’st no paine to thee). If then, O reader, little paine thou take, Thou greatest gaine with smallest paine shall make.”
• Lawson, George. Lectures on the Book of Ruth.
  • A man of great genius. Simple, fresh, and gracious. Nothing critical or profound may be looked far, but wise and sound teaching may be gleaned in these pages.

I-II Samuel

Contextual Commentaries

• Kitto, John. Daily Bible Illustrations
  • Should always be consulted.

Exegetical Commentaries

• Willet, Andrew. A Harmony Upon the First & Second Books of Samuel.
  • The work is unusually brief for the age of its compo-stition, and full of variety. Under every verse, and often clause of a verse, the learned author proposes a question, and proceeds to answer it. These are such as the following: “What a daughter of Belial is?” “Whether any may be said to sin with the will of God?” “What doors of the house of Jehovah Samuel opened!” “What is to be thought of E1i’s state before God.”

Sermonic Commentaries

• Lives of King David
  • Taylor, William. David: His Life & it’s Lessons.
    • A grand work which should be in every library.
  • Lawson, George. Discourses on the History of David.
    • Here the life of David is piously turned to practical use. Delany and Chandler are but bones, and Lawson the marrow.
  • Vince, Charles. Lights & Shadows in the Life of King David
    • Sermons of the highest order upon a few incidents in David’s life. They are models of chaste, subdued, but powerful preaching.
  • Blaikie, William. David: King of Israel.
    • Dr. Blaikie is a good writer. This Life of David has supplied a great lack.
• Lives of Samuel the Prophet
  • Steele, Robert. Samuel the Prophet.
    • The author has done his work well, and has shown an evident desire to excite others to a greater knowledge of the subject than he could impart. Hence he gives a list of the writers upon Samuel, and such accounts of them as were within his reach. Young readers will find this book a great help to them.
  • Plumptre, Helen. The History of Samuel.
    • A children’s book, and childlike men will be thankful for the many very useful hints which it throws out. We have got more out of it than we have found in huge and learned tomes.
• Lives of King Saul
  • Miller, J.A. Saul, The First King of Israel.
    • Eminently thoughtful, useful, practical sermons. We do not see how Saul’s life-failure could be more profitably set forth.

I-II Kings

Contextual Commentaries

• Kitto, John. Daily Bible Illustrations.
  • Full of deeply interesting matter.

Technical Commentaries

• Lange, Peter. Commentaries on the Holy Scriptures: 1–2 Kings.
  • It must have cost great effort to make the homiletical part of this volume as good as it is. It is a treasury to the preacher, and is all the more precious because we have next to nothing upon the books of the Kings.

Sermonic Commentaries

• The Temple
  • Edersheim, Alfred. The Temple.
    • This will supply the student with all that he needs upon the subject in hand.
• Lives of Elijah, Elisha, & Naaman.
  • Lives of Elijah
    • Krummacher, F.W. Elijah the Tishbite.
      • Too well known and approved to need any commendation from us.
    • Macduff, J.R. The Prophet of Fire.
      • Dr. Macduff writes popularly, yet he is by no means weak or shallow, He is to the young minister all the more useful, because he has worked out the problem of making sound thought intelligible to the multitude.
  • Lives of Elisha
    • Krummacher, F.W. Elisha.
      • Of this we may say as we did of the same author’s Elijah,—it needs no commending from us.
  • The Story of Naaman
    • Macduff, J.R. The Healing Waters: The Story of Naaman, an Old Testament Chapter on Providence & Grace.
      • In Dr. Macduff’s best manner, the story of Naaman is admirably handled, and made to teach the gospel with much freshness.
    • Rogers, Daniel. Naaman the Syrian: His Disease & Cure.
      • A huge Puritan volume of 898 folio pages, almost large enough to have loaded one of Naaman’s mules. It is a work which exhausts the subject and turns it to earnest evangelical uses.

I-II Chronicles

Exegetical Commentaries

• Bertheau, E. Commentary on the Books of Kings, Supplemented by a Commentary on the Books of Chronicles.
  • This is a most important help to the expositor. The student will not, however, find much in the way of reflections and doctrines.

Esther

Sermonic Commentaries

• Lawson, George. Discourses on Esther.
  • Intended for the general reader. The discourses are as spiritual and unaffected as their excellent author. Dr. John Brown, in commending all the Lawson books, says that “he has rendered subjects, apparently barren, full of instruction.”
• McCrie, Thomas. Lectures on Esther.
  • Dr. Davidson says of Dr. McCrie: “There is an ancient fable of a king who was gifted with the power of turning everything he touched into gold; and this eminent divine and historian possessed remarkably the gift of rendering every subject he handled so precious, as at least to discourage any one from attempting to follow in his track. In his Lectures upon the book of Esther, he has certainly left little for any to say who may come after him.”